INASP and Lund University Libraries to jointly develop ELIN@ for low
bandwidth environments
The participants in Programme for the Enhancement of Research Information
(PERI) now have a wide range of resources available to them online - however
finding relevant content remains a time-consuming and skilled operation. To
maximise the use of limited and costly internet connections, and provide an
efficient searching mechanism, International Network for the Availability of
Scientific Publications (INASP) have linked with Lund University Libraries,
Sweden, to adapt the Electronic Library Information Navigator (ELIN@) for
use by organisations in developing countries.
ELIN@ provides a technology solution in co-operation with a wide range of
publishers and information providers, using a single interface to search
across multiple resources. The resources available can be tailored to ensure
they comply with the licenses and access rights of the organisations The
development of the current ELIN@ application will optimise it for (s)lower
bandwidth environments. It will be tested in several different situations in
Africa and Asia. If the pilot proves to be successful, an open source
version will be made available for free downloading and use by
libraries in developing countries.
Carol Priestley, Director of INASP, says: "Programmes such as AGORA,
HINARI and PERI are providing affordable and sustainable access to
information. However, the availability of thousands of journal titles from
hundreds of publishers has become overwhelming. INASP is delighted to be
working with ELIN@ in adapting their highly successful model for use in
areas where the Internet is costly and bandwidth is limited. ELIN provides a
user-friendly interface and offers library staff easy administration tools
for managing electronic content."
Lars Bjornshauge, Director of Libraries at Lund University says: "We are
proud to be able to work with INASP to facilitate easier access for
institutions located in areas with low bandwidth. The mission and services
of INASP perfectly fit our commitment to develop services for easy end-user
access to scientific information. We certainly see our partnership with
INASP as a promising undertaking with long term implications and potential
for all parties involved."
For more information contact Martin Belcher at INASP (mbelcher@inasp.info
) or Lars Bjornshauge at Lund
University Libraries (lars.bjornshauge@lub.lu.se
).
Brief information on ELIN@ can be found at:
http://pluto.lub.lu.se/about/one.html
About Lund University Libraries, Head Office:
www.lub.lu.se/
or
www.doaj.org/
Lund University
Libraries, Head Office (established 2001) is engaged in the development of
state-of-the-art digital library services, library and information services
for the advancement of teaching and learning, electronic publishing and
scholarly communication. Activities include:
- hosting the Swedish Resource Centre for Scientific Communication, a
network;
- of Swedish librarians, researchers and decision makers;
- organising The Nordic Conferences on Scholarly Communication;
- developing the Lund University institutional repository; and
- developing and hosting DOAJ - the Directory of Open Access Journals.
About the International Network for the Availability of Scientific
Publications (INASP) www.inasp.info
INASP were established in 1992 as a programme of the International
Council of Science (ICSU), to enable worldwide access to information and
knowledge with particular emphasis on the needs of developing and
transitional countries. INASP works with partners around the world to
encourage the creation and production of information, to promote sustainable
and equitable access to information, to foster collaboration and networking,
and to strengthen local capacities to manage and use information and
knowledge.
Activities include; facilitation; advice and liaison services; workshops
and other training support; the Programme for the Enhancement of Research
Information (PERI) providing access to global and regional information;
publishing; and health and rural networking.
___________________________________________
'HIF-net at WHO': working together to improve access to reliable
information for healthcare workers and health professionals in developing
and transitional countries. Send list messages to <hif-net@who.int>. To join
the list, send an email to <health@inasp.info> with name, organization,
country, and brief description of professional interests.
Electronic library navigator
for low bandwidth environments